The City of Wolverhampton Council threw its doors open across the city today (Wednesday 26 October, 2022) as it launched its Warm Spaces scheme to help residents beat the cold and soaring bills this winter.
The council opened its own wide range of buildings across the city providing a warm welcome, as well as a Warm Space and somewhere to charge devices, connect to WiFi and get a hot drink.
Leader of the City of Wolverhampton Council, Councillor Ian Brookfield, launched the scheme at the Big Venture Centre in Chesterton Road, one of more than 30 designated Warm Spaces initially across the city.
He said: “I never thought I’d see the day where we had to do something like this in this country, but I want to make sure the people of Wolverhampton do not have to sit in the cold this winter because they’re afraid to put their heating on.
“Our wide range of community spaces and council buildings across the city will be open in any event, so why wouldn’t we throw our doors open over the coming months to help those in need stay warm?
“This is just the start and we’ll add more as we go along working with our community partners and faith groups, so people can look out for the friendly orange logo and know it’s somewhere they can go free of charge to keep warm, charge their devices, use the WiFi and get a hot drink and a bite to eat.
“For those who might have difficulty getting to a Warm Space, we’re also arranging a shuttle bus that can be booked through our customer services and online through our website.”
The Big Venture Centre is part of the WV10 Consortium, which the council supports and helps fund to empower grassroots community groups to work together to deliver services and support to local people, improving quality of life, health and wellbeing.
This week the centre is also part of the council’s Yo! Wolves initiative, offering hundreds of activities and events for the city’s children and young people and their families during the half-term school holiday. Many of the activities are free and include food, and range from sports, holiday camps and fun days out to dance and drama workshops, arts and crafts and more.
Find out more about Warm Spaces and your nearest one at www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/community/cost-of-living-support/warm-spaces.
